2016 2016: Sharon Kumar: Pursuing career in non-profits

Year: Class of 2016
Dual major: Finance & Management Leadership
Hometown: Burlington, MA
Leadership: Admissions Ambassador
Service: Endeavor Scholar
Next steps: Career in non-profit

Future in non-profit organizations

I love working in teams and being a leader, so management is a good fit for me. I double majored in Finance and Management Leadership because they’re an important administrative part of pretty much any non-profit industry. They’ll give me flexibility to choose any organization I want.

I’m interested in working for a non-profit organization that focuses on Christian faith, helping children, and fighting injustice.

Following graduation, I plan to explore different internship and job opportunities with non-profit organizations such as the YMCA, Compassion International, and Cru.

Endeavor scholarship fosters love of service

I chose UMass Dartmouth because I was awarded the full-ride Endeavor Scholarship. The experience has changed my life. It fostered my love for service and giving back to my community, pushed me out of my comfort zone, and has given me invaluable opportunities to grow in my leadership skills.

Being an Endeavor Scholar has opened my eyes to the fact that change starts with each one of us. None of us are too small to make a positive impact and endeavor to change the world.

I completed my service hours at a local non-profit organization called My Brother’s Keeper (MBK). It provides free furniture to any individual or family in need, no questions asked. The people at MBK have become my second family, and I truly know that I make a difference in the SouthCoast community by serving them.

My global and change agent project focuses on making interfaith cooperation a norm here at UMassD.

Campus: a second home

The people I’ve met and the community I’ve found here on campus makes UMass Dartmouth irreplaceable. This will always be my second home.

Dr. Kellyann Kowalski is my favorite professor. She has a unique way of engaging her students in various activities that foster hands-on learning.

My favorite spot on campus is the amphitheater where convocation and graduation are held. When the weather is nice and warm, my roommate and I love to head there with blankets and do our homework in the grass under the warmth of the sun.

Advice for future students

Be sure to enjoy every minute from the moment you set foot on campus. I know it probably sounds cliché, but the next four years will be some of the most amazing years of your life, and they go by in the blink of an eye.

Being an Endeavor Scholar has opened my eyes to the fact that change starts with each one of us. None of us are too small to make a positive impact and endeavor to change the world.